Most Discussed

Analytics: iOS gaining share, iPhone 5 beating Galaxy S III

updated 10:46 pm EDT, Fri October 12, 2012

by MacNN Staff

Galaxy S III now among top five devices for ad impressions

A pair of mobile marketing analytics companies -- Velti and Chitika -- have released statistics updating trends in both mobile ad impressions and web traffic, with some surprising results. According to Velti, the introduction of the iPhone 5 and iOS 6 has pushed Apple into a growth position over combined Android statistics in ad impressions. Chitika, meanwhile, reports that Android's top-selling phone, the Galaxy S III, has fallen to the iPhone 5 in terms of web traffic -- possibly suggesting that sales of the new iPhone have grown significantly.

Velti's monthly studies had seen Android "catching up" to iOS in terms of ad impressions -- a useful measure of app and web engagement -- over the summer, but as the company says "September marks an end to this trend." The launch of iOS 6 and the iPhone 5 saw iOS gaining share against Android for the first time in months, adding five percent to claim 62 percent of ad impressions, versus the combined Android ranking of 38 percent. Some 43 percent of impressions came from the US, with 14 percent from Japan and eight percent from the UK.

According to Velti, the first week of iOS 6 availability saw 40 percent of users upgrading. Eleven percent of iPhone owners are still on iOS 5, with almost all of the remainder on iOS 5. Importantly for the platform, the rapid adoption rate means that the price paid by advertisers per thousand impression rose 15 percent. Uniform upgrading and rapid adoption are two important advantages that Apple, which issues updates to all eligible devices simultaneously, holds over Android -- where carriers decide when and if various devices will get upgrades, and often delay or forbid updates in the hopes that users will upgrade to newer hardware.

Velti also monitored how usage broke out during the iPhone 5's first weekend and say the largest use (27 percent) was from social networking apps, with 22 percent going for games. The company said that photo usage dropped to a low of eight percent, but suggested that this was due to users taking advantage of the new built-in photo abilities and using ad-supported third-party camera apps less rather than indicating a drop in actual photography use. The iPhone 5 has a built-in panorama mode as well as an improved camera.

The company says the uptick mirrors exactly the spike seen when the iPhone 4S initially shipped. Velti uses information from the Mobclix Exchange, an amalgamation of more than 45 ad networks which monitors impressions on more than 33,500 apps. According to the compiled data, AT&T has around half of the US iPhone "market" based on ad impressions, while Verizon has about a third. After being available worldwide since May (or the end of June in the US), Samsung's flagship Galaxy S III cracked into the top five of devices in terms of ad impressions, claiming one percent of all impressions. The other four spots are all iOS devices.

Early in September, Samsung had announced that they had sold 20 million units of its marquee smartphone and chief iPhone rival, the Galaxy S III. The number was based on both nine million non-US preorders as well as sales since the phone debuted. However, Chitika found that during the week of October 3-9, web traffic volume from the iPhone 5 had overtaken the Galaxy S III, 56 percent to 44 percent respectively.

Apple announced that it had sold over five million iPhone 5 units in the initial weekend, though it was later found that this figure did not include more than two million in pre-orders. However, those numbers alone could not account for the surpassing of Galaxy S III web traffic, suggesting that Apple's sales after the initial weekend have continued at a strong pace -- and possibly hinting that the iPhone 5 has taken 18 days to outsell the Galaxy S III's five-month sales record. Firm conclusions are difficult to draw, however, as numerous studies have shown a strange disparity between web activity on Android units compared to iOS devices, with users of the latter consistently found to be more active on the web with their mobile devices.

Login Here

Please note that it takes a couple of minutes for new comments to be visible in this area.

&nbsp

Now AAPL Stock: 114.5 ( + 2.38 )

Cirrus creates Lightning-headphone dev kit

Apple supplier Cirrus Logic has introduced a MFi-compliant new development kit for companies interested in using Cirrus' chips to create Lightning-based headphones, which -- regardless of whether rumors about Apple dropping the analog headphone jack in its iPhone this fall -- can offer advantages to music-loving iOS device users. The kit mentions some of the advantages of an all-digital headset or headphone connector, including higher-bitrate support, a more customizable experience, and support for power and data transfer into headphone hardware. Several companies already make Lightning headphones, and Apple has supported the concept since June 2014. http://bit.ly/29giiZj

Share

Developer162d

Apple Store app offers Procreate Pocket

The Apple Store app for iPhone, which periodically rewards users with free app gifts, is now offering the iPhone "Pocket" version of drawing app Procreate for those who have the free Apple Store app until July 28. Users who have redeemed the offer by navigating to the "Stores" tab of the app and swiping past the "iPhone Upgrade Program" banner to the "Procreate" banner have noted that only the limited Pocket (iPhone) version of the app is available free, even if the Apple Store app is installed and the offer redeemed on an iPad. The Pocket version currently sells for $3 on the iOS App Store. [32.4MB]

Share

162d

Porsche adds CarPlay to 2017 Panamera

Porsche has added a fifth model of vehicle to its CarPlay-supported lineup, announcing that the 2017 Panamera -- which will arrive in the US in January -- will include Apple's infotainment technology, and be seen on a giant 12.3-inch touchscreen as part of an all-new Porsche Communication Management system. The luxury sedan starts at $99,900 for the 4S model, and scales up to the Panamera Turbo, which sells for $146,900. Other vehicles that currently support CarPlay include the 2016 911 and the 2017 models of Macan, 718 Boxster, and 718 Cayman. The company did not mention support for Google's corresponding Android Auto in its announcement. http://bit.ly/295ZQ94

Share

Industry162d

Apple employees testing wheelchair features

New features included in the forthcoming watchOS 3 are being tested by Apple retail store employees, including a new activity-tracking feature that has been designed with wheelchair users in mind. The move is slightly unusual in that, while retail employees have previously been used to test pre-release versions of OS X and iOS, this marks the first time they've been included in the otherwise developer-only watchOS betas. The company is said to have gone to great lengths to modify the activity tracker for wheelchair users, including changing the "time to stand" notification to "time to roll" and including two wheelchair-centric workout apps. http://bit.ly/2955JDa

Share

Troubleshooting163d

SanDisk reveals two 256GB microSDXC cards

SanDisk has introduced two 256GB microSDXC cards. Arriving in August for $150, the Ultra microSDXC UHS-I Premium Edition card offers transfer speeds of up to 95MB/s for reading data. The Extreme microSDXC UHS-I card can read at a fast 100MB/s and write at up to 90MB/s, and will be shipping sometime in the fourth quarter for $200. http://bit.ly/294Q1If

Share

Upgrades/storage163d

Apple's third-quarter results due July 26

Apple has advised it will be issuing its third-quarter results on July 26, with a conference call to answer investor and analyst queries about the earnings set to take place later that day. The stream of the call will go live at 2pm PT (5pm ET) via Apple's investor site, with the results themselves expected to be released roughly 30 minutes before the call commences. Apple's guidance for the quarter put revenue at between $41 billion and $43 billion. http://apple.co/1oi1Pbm

Share

Investor164d

Twitter stickers slowly roll out to users

Twitter has introduced "stickers," allowing users to add extra graphical elements to their photos before uploading them to the micro-blogging service. A library of hundreds of accessories, props, and emoji will be available to use as stickers, which can be resized, rotated, and placed anywhere on the photograph. Images with stickers will also become searchable with viewers able to select a sticker to see how others use the same graphic in their own posts. Twitter advises stickers will be rolling out to users over the next few weeks, and will work on both the mobile apps and through the browser. http://bit.ly/29bbwUE